Nicknamed the “King of Hillbilly Piano Players,” Moon Mullican began his musical life on the organ his religious father bought to practice church hymns. Mullican, however, was drawn to a different sound. He befriended Joe Jones, a Black sharecropper and guitarist on the family farm, who introduced him to the blues. His family did not approve, and at age 16, Mullican left home to pursue music.

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In 1936, Mullican recorded Cab Calloway’s “Georgia Pine” and performed his own compositions—“Ain’t You Kinda Sorry” and “Swing Baby Swing”—as a member of Leon Selph’s Western swing band, the Blue Ridge Playboys. Over the years he also played and recorded with Cliff Bruner’s Texas Wanderers, the Sunshine Boys, and Jimmie Davis.

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With the Texas Wanderers in the early 1940s, Mullican sang on the hits “Truck Driver’s Blues” and “I’ll Keep on Loving You.” He recorded an eclectic mix of material, including Irving Berlin’s “Blue Skies,” the blues ballad “Sundown Blues,” the jazz-blues-gospel hybrid “Lay Me Down Beside My Darling,” and “Pipeline Blues.” Record labels often struggled to categorize his style. He also covered blues standards such as Lead Belly’s “Goodnight Irene” and Memphis Minnie’s “What’s the Matter with the Mill.”

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Mullican’s chart successes included the No. 1 hit “I’d Sail My Ship Alone,” along with “Sweeter Than the Flowers,” “Cherokee Boogie,” and multiple versions of the Cajun classic “Jole Blon.” As rock ’n’ roll emerged, he adapted easily, recording energetic tracks like “Seven Nights to Rock” and “Moon’s Rock.” His national stature grew, and in 1951 he became a member of the Grand Ole Opry.